Chromium

12.1

First draft

"Miss Zephyr." The Umbra's hologram materialized in the middle of the room, his voice ringing in Dia's ears.

"Umbra." She whispered, her eyes lingering on his eerie helmet as he loomed over her. She couldn't help but take a step back when his creepy shadow inched forward, his multiple bionic arms spreading out like a huge spider was about to pounce on her, enveloping her body in a death grip.

"It's been a while, hasn't it? I'm..."He paused as if he was searching for a word he'd rarely used, "...glad to see you are doing well. But let's dispense with the pleasantries. We don't have much time. I suppose I should apologize for what happened with Gibson. It was a terrible miscalculation on my part."

"Miscalculation?" Her voice was incredulous. Obviously, the Umbra didn't answer. Not a surprise. It seemed to be a habit of his.

"But rejoice. The person who betrayed you...who betrayed me, is already in my custody. She's not getting away with this."

Dia drew nearer, her curiosity bypassing her fear for the moment, "Suzanne? Did you catch her? Why did she..."

"We have no time to talk about her now." Reyes quickly interjected.

She opened her mouth wide, turning to look at him, "But..."

"Leave it alone." He warned.

Dia scowled at him, but the Umbra was a bit like time: he waited for no one.

"You must have a lot of questions." He continued as nothing happened, "But in the end, it all comes down to one simple question: Why me? Why are they looking for me?"

Dia tensed, her whole body shaking as she held her breath.

"Unfortunately, I don't have the answer to that question. I don't know why the Collective wants you."

Dia let out a breath she hadn't been aware she was holding, relief suffusing her features.

"But I know how this started. It was a dream, two men working toward the same goal, the evolution of the human race."

"You and Gibson?" She asked.

"Don't interrupt him, Dia." Reyes whispered.

Dia couldn't help but lift her chin in mute defiance and glare at him. Reyes stared back at her, but the Umbra just kept talking. He didn't seem to care about their staring contest.

"However, right from the start, they had to face countless obstacles." He said, "At first, they thought the problem lay in the lack of resources. That's why they needed a third party, someone with unlimited funds."

Dia's face went blank, "The Emperor. You're talking about the emperor."

"It was so easy." The Umbra said, his toneless voice reverberating in Reyes' quarters, "The emperor knew the Empire was a giant with clay feet, its foundations crumbling under the weight of corruption, the expense created by the Navy, the tool he and the past emperors used to maintain their power. The only viable solution was to downsize the fleet, reshape the empire and turn a parasitic aberration, based on exploitation and repression, into a self-sustaining economy. Of course, that's the only thing the emperor couldn't do. He was afraid that the Fringe worlds would take up arms, slipping beyond his grasp. The only alternative was to colonize new planets, but he knew that the Imperial Navy wasn't powerful enough to defeat the Collective. The emperor was running out of options when he met someone. This person was a young man, a researcher fresh out of the science academy, and yet he was so different from the usual mainstream scientists."